BLM oil and gas lease sale nets $2.1 million

DENVER - Today the Bureau of Land Management Colorado State Office sold 111 parcels totaling 68,897 acres for $2.1 million including rentals and fees at its quarterly oil and gas lease sale. The highest per-acre price was for an 80-acre parcel in Bent County was sold to Martin Oil and Gas, in Uniontown PA for $300 per acre.

The State of Colorado will receive 49 percent of the proceeds of the sale, with the remainder going to the U.S. government. The State of Colorado received more than $158 million in Fiscal Year 2012 from royalties, rentals and bonus bid payments for all federal minerals, including oil and gas. BLM Colorado currently has approximately 4.2 million acres of public mineral estate leased for oil and natural gas development, generating more than $6.5 billion in direct economic benefits in 2011, and approximately $9.5 billion in total economic impacts.

A lease is the first step for a company or individual before eventually applying to develop and produce oil and gas from the BLM-managed public mineral estate. Additional planning, environmental analysis and public input must occur before drilling can begin.

The BLM manages more than 245 million acres of public land, the most of any Federal agency. This land, known as the National System of Public Lands, is primarily located in 12 Western states, including Alaska. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. The BLM's mission is to manage and conserve the public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations under our mandate of multiple-use and sustained yield. In Fiscal Year 2013, the BLM generated $4.7 billion in receipts from public lands.